One of my favorite seasons in my career was when I was doing adoption social work. I would meet with the prospective parent(s) for 15 to 20 hours and talk about everything from home layout and neighborhood to faith, fears, and hopes for their adopted child(ren) and family. We would talk about the child’s country of origin, homecoming, and entry into a new family, transitions for everyone, and how adoption can and should be a recurring conversation 
over the years. How an individual or family embraces adoption when a child is 5, 15, or 25 will look very different and will bring about different conversations. We would converse about conflict management, conversation patterns, and how loved and supported family members in the household felt. We ventured into areas of struggle, 
accountability, self-awareness, and addiction history. A home study is not for the faint of heart. And I always assured the families that when the child comes home, there will be lots of transition, questions, struggles, wonder, joy, and mystery! 🙂
What I love about Christmas is seeing pictures of “my people.” It has been 15 to 20 years since I sat at their kitchen table and wrote their home studies. The families I embraced when they welcomed their children home have grown up and navigated many spaces. I see their pictures and stand in awe of God’s goodness and provision through good and difficult days. I admire the parent(s) who stepped out in faith and journeyed a road that can be one of the most
unknown and life-rewarding. As we wrap up Christmas 2023, I want to tip my hat and open my heart to all adoptive parents. I see you and am so thankful for your commitment to love deeply and with abandon. To all siblings who woke up one day to an extra sibling or two, you. are more understanding of the world, which is beautiful and complex. I see you, and I thank you for all the times you had to step aside while your new sibling was getting used to so much new! To all the families who have journeyed adoption, your pictures tell a beautiful, rich, deep, meaningful story! May we all be privileged to hear just a bit of it someday.